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christmas gift exchange

Be Humble in Difficult Times!!

I’m not proud of this story. As Scripture says, “For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of”(Luke 6:45b, NIV). My outburst revealed what was in my heart – overload, frustration and anger. Consider this: The circumstances of the first Christmas were very stressful, too. There was an unmarried, pregnant teenager. There was a scared but faithful fianc?. There was no room in the inn. There were smelly animals and scratchy straw. There was an unidentified star in the sky. They implemented the truth in today’s key verse. Their trust in God made them steadfast.

Proverbs 4:25 (NIV)- “Let your eyes look straight ahead; fix your gaze directly before you”. (This verse encourages focus on a righteous path, away from distractions, as detailed in the surrounding verses.) During these busy times we should not fear instead we should think and redirect our mind to focus on the lord. He is the reason for this season!

What about Joseph? Matthew 1:18-25 (NIV) talks about Josephs emotions during this time. He’s told Mary is pregnant even though she’s a virgin. Joseph was planing to divorce her quietly until an angel explained everything to him. Joseph was obedient and we learned a lot about his character. Obedience and loyalty was a way of life for Joseph!

Congratulations to Krista and Tim of San Louisville for being caller #9! The winners will be announced tomorrow during The Morning Thing!

Our Name That Tune was Toby Mac and Tasha Layton with Christmas Hits Different! Congratulations to Jim of Mount Vernon for guessing the artist and song name and taking home a $5 gift card to Watts Restaurant in Utica!

Tune in Tomorrow for The All Request Drive with Ethan and Joe!

Thanks for listening!!

– Gabriella, Ethan, and Daniel 🙂

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Holy Night with Candy Canes!!

Who knew fact checks: Candy canes were always red and white j-hooks? NO! Candy canes began as simple white sugar sticks in Europe in the 1600s. Hard candy sticks were popular then, and over time the idea of bending them into a hooked shape emerged — possibly to resemble a shepherd’s staff or simply to make them easier to hang on Christmas trees

Who knew: Story behind O Holy Night. “O Holy Night” began not as an English carol, but as a French poem titled Minuit, chrétiens (“Midnight, Christians”). In 1843, the poet Placide Cappeau wrote the words at the request of his parish priest to celebrate a newly restored church organ in Roquemaure, France.The song didn’t become popular in the English-speaking world until 1855, when John Sullivan Dwight, a Unitarian minister and abolitionist, translated it into English. Dwight was especially moved by a verse that speaks of breaking chains and declaring all people brothers, which resonated powerfully in the years before and during the American Civil War

Who knew: Wright Brother’s Day. One important day that changed the world was the day when a man was able to fly through the air in the style of a bird! Not only was this unprecedented, but it set the stage for a whole host of other ideas and inventions that have contributed to the advancement of technology as well as the adventure into space.

Who am I? 

1. I was born on December 17, 1894, in Boston, Massachusetts. 

2. I led the same orchestra for nearly 50 years, longer than almost any major conductor in American history. 
3. I believed classical music should be for everyone, not just concert halls and critics. 
4. I helped turn an orchestra into one of the best-selling recording acts of its time. 
5. I made free outdoor concerts a beloved American tradition—especially on the Fourth of July. 
• I was honored with the Presidential Medal of Freedom for my impact on American culture. 

 Arthur Fiedler, legendary conductor of the Boston Pops Orchestra. 

Congratulations to Amanda of Mount Vernon and Richard for being caller #9 and participating in our Christmas Gift Exchange! Tomorrow is the last day to participate and the winners will be announced THIS FRIDAY!

Thank you for supporting the 44th annual Food For The Hungry drive!
Thank you for supporting the annual Food for the Hungry drive! Our current total is $346,854.32 and 15 Truckloads of Food! (as of 5:00pm 12/16/2025)

Tune in tomorrow for Praise Thursday with Ethan and Gabriella!

Thanks for listening!

– Joe and Gabriella

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Rudolph or Rollo?!?

Who knew: Jingle Bells wasn’t even written for Christmas? It was actually a Thanksgiving song! But hey… it’s hard to resist a good sleigh ride in December

Who knew: Before plastic trees, the first artificial Christmas trees were made in Germany from green-dyed goose feathers. Yep — goose feathers. Festive… and probably a little fluffy

Who knew: Rudolph almost had a different name. Early drafts called him Rollo or Reginald. Imagine singing ‘Rollo the Red-Nosed Reindeer’… doesn’t quite land

Who knew: The first electric Christmas lights? Totally a marketing stunt. Thomas Edison’s team wired them up in the 1880s just to show off the power of electricity

Who am I?…

  1. I was born today, December 3, 1937, in Miami, Florida, and passed away on November 9, 2024, in Mooresville, North Carolina. 
  1. I was a central member of the famed “Alabama Gang,” a group of racers based in Hueytown, Alabama. This group was known for dominating NASCAR from the 1960s—1990s. 
  1. I won the 1983 NASCAR Cup Series Championship, driving for Di Gard Racing. 
  1. I earned 84 official NASCAR Cup Series wins, tying me for fourth on the all-time wins list. 
  1. My career effectively ended after a near-fatal crash in 1988 at Pocono Raceway, which resulted in major head injuries and forced my retirement from driving. 

I am… Bobby Allison! Congratulations to Tomi of Mount Vernon for taking home 2 $5 gift cards to Watts Restaurant in Utica!

Congratulations to Dennis of Utica and Bob from Mount Vernon for being caller #9 and playing our Christmas Gift Exchange! For more information about our fun exchange click HERE!

Thanks for listening!

Tune in for Praise Thursday with Eric!

– Joe and Gabriella 🙂

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Christmas Gift Exchange!!

The WNZR Christmas Gift Exchange IS BACK!
Tune in for your chance to win an amazing prize. Each day of the contest, our DJs will select Christmas gifts to put under the tree. Throughout the day, the DJs will give a cue to call 740-397-WNZR (9697).
Caller #9 gets the chance to pick which DJ’s gift they want from under the tree. You need to choose carefully, because you only get one chance to exchange the gift. We’ll announce the SEVEN grand prize winners on Friday, December 19th throughout the 7am hour on The Morning Thing. Congratulations to Lisa of Mount Vernon and Erica of West Virginia!

Name a popular Christmas decoration. 

  1. Christmas Tree (35) 
  1. Lights (30) 
  1. Ornaments (20) 
  1. Wreath (10) 
  1. Tinsel (5) 

Thanks for listening!

– Gabriella and Joe 🙂

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Christmas stress…and how to avoid it!

Why is it that we get so stressed out around Christmas? Is it the tight finances, the holiday rush, trying to figure out what the heck to buy for your family, or all of the above. Honestly, it’s all that and more.

It’s Praise Thursday on The Afternoon Drive, and Christmas stress is almost always unavoidable. But maybe part of the problem is that we take our focus off of what Christmas is really about. The humble birth of a small child, in a quiet peaceful manger, destined to be savior and king of the world. Christmas is about the peace, joy and comfort of the Lord…not the buzz and business of everything else. But we lose sight of that so often. This Christmas, we need to remember what Christmas is really about, the light of the word: JESUS!

It’s the last day of the WNZR Christmas Gift Exchange! Congratulations to Brad from Mount Vernon and Mary from Fredericktown, they were our last two winners for the season! Tune in to The Morning Thing tomorrow at 7:30, we’ll be announcing our SEVEN grand prize winners!

Today’s track was ‘Mary Did You Know’ by Jason Crabb. Congratulations to Charla from Utica for naming the right tune! She wins the $5 Gift Card to Watts Restaurant in Utica!

Thanks for listening!- Judah

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On the First Day of Christmas….I got what??

If you were to find one of the MANY gifts in the Christmas classic, “12 Days of Christmas”…how would react?

It’s Who Knew Wednesday on The Afternoon Drive, and we tested your Christmas music knowledge…of the 364 presents (when you imagine getting the gifts each day), which one would you be excited about…and which one not so much? Drop your answers here! https://www.facebook.com/photo?fbid=1126932696100191&set=a.392606606199474

Our friend Colleen shared an incredible story of God’s faithfulness with a wallet her husband’s parents gave to him…that they found four months later and had the perfect amount of money they needed! He is always faithful!

Congratulations to Bob and Kim, our Christmas Gift Exchange winners for today! They’ve both been entered into our drawing for our SEVEN GRAND PRIZE WINNERS! Keep listening for your chance to win!

Congratulations to Chris from Gambier, who guessed our two-week stumper!!

  • I was born November 27, 1701 in Uppsala, Sweden.
  • My father was an astronomy professor and my uncle was a botanist
  • I chose physics and astronomy as my areas of emphasis
  • I created a temperature scale that now bears my name
  • I originally scaled 0 degrees as boiling and 100 degrees as freezing, but that was eventually reverted
  • I also participated in an expedition to the Arctic Circle to measure the shape of the earth

It is Swedish native Anders Celsius! Chris wins two 5 gift cards to Watts Restaurant in Utica.

Thanks for listening!
– Joe and Judah

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The Christmas Gift Exchange – Day One!

Our 2024 Christmas Gift Exchange starts today! Listen for the cue to call and be the 9th caller to get something from the WNZR Christmas tree.

We also have some fantastic grand prizes for all prize winners. Click here to find out more!

Today’s winners:
Debbie from Brinkhaven (4pm – wins a WNZR rollup blanket)
Jennifer from Mount Vernon (5pm – wins Max Lucado’s “In The Manger Book”)

Name something people associate with Santa Claus:

  1. Presents/gifts (25 votes)
  2. Elves (18)
  3. Mrs. Claus (15)
  4. Sleigh (13)
  5. Reindeer (12)
  6. His beard (10)

Congratulations to Amanda from Mount Vernon, who guessed correctly and wins the $5 gift card to Watts Restaurant in Utica.

Thanks for listening!
– Joe

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Christmas Devotionals

To start this Christmas edition of Praise Thursday I shared a devotional from “The Christmas Story,” it talked about how God brought two totally different groups together when Jesus was born. The first group being local shepherds and the second being the wise men. Showing us that God invites everyone to celebrate the birth of His Son!

Dylan then shared a Christmas Devotional from “Our Daily Bread,” sharing the story about Christmas Eve in 1968 when the Apollo 8 astronauts, who where the first humans to enter lunar orbit, read Genesis 1 during a live broadcast. Years later they were told that broadcast was the “largest audience that had ever listened to a human voice.” Showing us that God gives us an opportunity to share His word and it all comes back to the story of His Son Jesus!

Congrats to Jane from Howard, she was the 9th caller for Christmas Gift Exchange during the show! She is now entered into our Grand Prize drawing, which is tomorrow Friday, December 23rd during The Morning Thing at 7:30am! So don’t forget to tune in!

Thanks for Listening!

Emma and Dylan

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First Day of Winter!

To kick off Who Knew Wednesday we started with today being the December solstice. Today is the longest night and the shortest day of the year, marking today being the first official day of winter!

We continued Who Knew Wednesday with the news that tomorrow is National Cookie Exchange Day! A day that you can make wonderful Christmas cookies and exchange them with the people you love. It’s a wonderful way to spend time with family and get ready for Christmas!

Congrats to Monica from Gambier and Candy from Walhonding they were our winners Christmas Gift Exchange! They are also now in our Grand Prize drawing for a chance to win one of three prizes. The Grand Prize drawing is this Friday, December 23rd at 7:30am on The Morning Thing! Tune in tomorrow for your chance to win!

Thank you for Listening!

Emma and Judah

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